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Mom Warns About Online Kids Game After 'Violent Gang Rape'

If you’re a parent of a child who plays on screens, you might be
familiar with the online game "Roblox." A user-generated
online gaming platform, Roblox allows users to
create “worlds” and avatars that interact with each other. And while parents can
adjust security settings,
the avatars can still virtually interact with each other.

One mom and daughter found this out the hard way.

Amber Petersen, mom to a 7-year-old
daughter, had an experience with the game that will leave you
questioning if anything can ever truly be “safe” in an online platform where
children are involved.

Petersen explained in a Facebook post that she and her husband let their daughter get the game, but they set
the security to “maximum privacy.” Petersen also made sure to monitor her daughter
while she played. But on one particular morning, her daughter stopped playing to show her mom
the screen.

WARNING: EXTREMELY GRAPHIC AND UPSETTING SCREENSHOTS IN THE COMMENTS. DO NOT VIEW WITH CHILDREN PRESENT. OR JUST TAKE MY WORD FOR IT AND SPARE YOURSELF ALTOGETHER. I am beyond disgusted to post these...

Photograph by Facebook

“At first, I couldn’t believe what I was
seeing,” Petersen wrote. “My sweet and innocent daughter’s avatar was being
violently gang-raped on a playground by two males. A female observer approached
them and proceeded to jump on her body at the end of the act. Then the three
characters ran away, leaving my daughter’s avatar lying on her face in the
middle of the playground.”

Petersen shared the post, complete with very graphic screenshots, of the horrifying
incident that occurred while her daughter played the game. The post quickly
went viral, with other concerned parents sharing similar incidents that have
happened and issuing warnings about the safety of online platforms for
children. Eventually, Petersen updated her post, noting that "Roblox" had
issued an official response to their situation:

“We were outraged to learn
that Roblox's community policies and Rules of Conduct were subverted. We have
identified how this bad actor created the offending action and are
putting additional safeguards in place to reduce the possibility of this
happening again in the future. In addition, the offender was identified and has
been permanently banned from the platform and we have suspended the game. We
have zero tolerance for this behavior. Our work to ensure a safe platform is
always evolving and remains a top priority for us.”

Despite assurance from "Roblox," the incident has left
Petersen questioning how important screens are to her family.

“After what just
took place this morning, I’m actually questioning whether or not I should allow
my precious 7-year-old daughter to have access to a screen ever again,” she
explained. “Parents/Caregivers ... I urge you to take another look
at the security settings on all of your devices and closely supervise your
child if you allow them to continue playing games with online platforms such as
Roblox. Better yet, perhaps you can join me in taking the rest of this summer
to challenge your child to put away their screens ... and read!!! Books cannot
be hacked, but sadly, I’ve learned the hard way that a child’s innocence can be
just at the touch of a button.”